Mature Intentions
by NessieGG
Summary: It takes a mission to show Neji that Tenten has grown up, but she learns a little herself. Part Four: 'I can't see inside you if you look away.' [NejiTen.]
1. Birthday Mission

**A/N**: My first NejiTen story – but I love them because the highly talented Goldberry refused to let me do otherwise! (Kidding, Berry-nee.) Also my second Naruto fic. Rated for situations – mostly in later chapters – and a bit of language.

Disclaimer: I do not own _Naruto_ or any of its characters. I am making no profit from this story.

Dedicated to Goldberry.

**Mature Intentions**

Part One: Birthday Mission

By Nessie

Tenten was unusually late in leaving the house the day when she was to see the Fifth Hokage. Though she had a reputation of being punctual, it was only due to the fact that she was the fastest kunoichi in Konoha. She had a wretched habit of sleeping in, something that had developed after a mission when she and Lee had been forced to change their resting hours to later than normal.

She fixed her hair as she ran, wrapping the chestnut locks into their customary buns on top of her head. Often Tenten had thought about getting a haircut and doing something new with her appearance now that she wasn't a child anymore, but in the end she decided against it. In a life where there was always change, it seemed part of her still clung to something constant; even something as unimportant as hair.

By the time she reached the office building of the Hokage, she managed to look something close to presentable. This turned out to be an especially good thing because Hyuuga Neji was standing outside the main entrance, leaning against a wall and waiting for her.

She stopped short, kicking up some dust as she went from thirty miles per hour to zero. "Neji," she breathed, gasping more from surprise than from lack of air.

"Hey." He pushed off from the wall, long ebony hair swaying as he straightened. "A little behind, aren't you?" he commented, his voice tinted with the slightest bit of wit.

She glanced at her watch and grinned. "Not yet. What are you doing here? I thought you and Hinata were supposed to go to some Hyuuga family ceremony today."

"It was postponed due to orders from the Hokage." Her former teammate turned away from her and began to walk inside. "I've been assigned to the same mission as you."

If Tenten's brain had been a clock, it would have missed a tick. "The same mission…as me?" she repeated dumbly. As her legs followed him automatically, her mind raced. It was nearly unbelievable. She and Neji hadn't been on a mission together in nearly two years, ever since they had both been promoted to Chuunin. Since then, Neji and Shikamaru had been main partners, and they had been most recently joined by Shino. It was believed that their combined techniques were the most beneficial when put together, and they made a good team.

Though nobody had said so, he had surpassed Tenten. And the actual time they had spent together in the last couple of years amounted to almost half a week. She had been partnered with only Lee lately.

"What for?" she went on, still puzzled. "Wouldn't it make more sense to send someone from my team? Like Lee or even Ino or Sakura?" She might have said Naruto if the thought of working with him didn't exasperate her so much.

"If I knew," the Byakugan user said quietly, "I would tell you."

Tenten nodded, this time keeping her mouth shut. Another one of her bad habits was to talk needlessly, and she knew that Neji had always been bothered by it during their days in Team Gai.

They entered the office of the Hokage together. Family upraising and a lifetime of servitude had Neji allowing Tenten inside first, and she tried to take little notice of it. But she always found herself briefly reflecting on such actions, casual as they were. It had interested her for years now – just how much of Neji was built on manners. She looked at him in passing, and he met her eyes with a cool expression. Anyone would think that he was perfectly calm, that nothing could get close enough to bother him. But to her…

He always seemed so ready to break loose.

"Tenten."

Her train of thought was broken by the voice of the Fifth Hokage. Snapping her brown eyes to the figure sitting behind the desk, she was immediately overcome by the same notion that she got every time she saw the leader of Konoha.

Tsunade was as beautiful as ever, and it was hard to believe that she was nearing 55 years old. She still looked no older than thirty, and the only giveaway to her actual age was the way her eyes appeared. The brown of them was far deeper than one would expect. Tenten always felt inspired by her.

Well, at least she did until she took in the way the Fifth leaned casually against the desk, her fingers linked and holding up her chin. Behind her, Shizune stood with an armload of paperwork, looking stressed. On the floor near her feet, the pig Tonton was squealing anxiously. Tenten nearly sighed. Tsunade-sama had been notoriously slacking off again.

"Thank you for coming so early," Tsunade said as Neji was shutting the door behind him. Behind her, Shizune rolled her eyes, seeming to say, "_It's nearly **noon**, Tsunade-sama!"_ Tsunade either took no notice or ignored her. "I suppose both you and Neji are a bit confused about why I called you two here together."

Tenten, not knowing what to say, only gave her a small smile. She couldn't see what kind of response Neji made since he was standing a little behind her.

"I have decided to send you on the same mission for some very practical reasons," Tsunade went on. "It's an easy one – you won't even be leaving the country – but it's going to take some deception."

The stalling was driving Tenten crazy. "Whatever it is," she said confidently, "I'm sure Neji and I can take care of it well for you."

"Heh." A corner of her bright red lips turned up with a smirk. "That's exactly what I wanted to hear." Leaning back, she pulled out a drawer to her right and took out a couple sheets of paper. She tossed them onto the desk facing them, and Neji and Tenten moved closer to examine it.

One sheet was a large and somewhat blurry picture of a man with shoulder-length black hair, bright green eyes, and a slightly crooked nose. He wasn't particularly unattractive, but he wasn't extraordinarily handsome either. His eyebrows were lowered in a mean look. The sheet next to this picture contained standard information on him: blood type, age, affiliations, and so on.

"This man is Urume Hidegaya," Tsunade began, her tone changing to something akin to formal. "He is the leader of a syndicate clan in the southern part of the Country of Fire. A real bastard," she added, and Tenten blinked in surprise. "He's trying to dip his hand into Konoha, hoping to make exchanges with other syndicates from other countries."

"Selling what?" came Neji's patient voice.

Tsunade's eyebrows arched. "Medicine. As drugs, not cures." She sounded annoyed.

"That's…" Tenten found she had no words to express her disgust with the idea and instead folded her arms and waited for the Fifth to continue.

"He's lying low for now, staying at an inn called the Yumuwa in a village not too far away. The Yumuwa is known for operating many hot springs. It's fairly remote, so it's a good place for Urume to hide out as well as take it easy." Tsunade opened another drawer and fished out a scroll. Handing it to Neji, she said, "Here's the map to get you there. I've already outlined the quickest path for you."

She turned her gaze to Tenten, and her smile fell. Tenten didn't know why, but she suddenly felt something in her stomach clench, as though something she would dislike was about to befall her. And since the circumstances of the morning were strange enough already, she was fairly sure that something was.

Taking a breath, Tsunade leaned back. "This is a different sort of mission than what you're used to, Tenten. For this, I need you to go undercover. You too, Neji. But it's Tenten who is the key to this mission."

"Me?" Tenten wet her lips, which had gone dry with odd nervousness. "But why—"

"Simply put," interrupted the Hokage, "you're an attractive young woman. You're also resourceful and have shown on previous missions that you take your work very seriously. That is imperative for this little incognito trip. Urume isn't easily fooled. Other countries and even some of our own shinobi have gone to try to catch him in breaking laws, but each time he's made himself out to be as innocent as a fisherman. I'm counting on you two to turn our luck around."

"What must we do?" asked Tenten. It seemed that Neji was content to just stand there and wait for instructions.

"You two will join Urume at the Yumuwa Inn. Neji will act as though he is interested in buying some of Urume's stock. Most preferably, you'll catch him with the product on him. Make it convincing, and stretch it out. Never rush. He'll know if you're not truly interested and you could blow the whole thing." She waited until Neji nodded his understanding.

"This is where you come in, Tenten. Just to make sure that Urume's focus is a bit off, we've added a bit of assurance. Like most leaders who rule a large organization, Urume is used to luxury. He knows he can get whatever he wants. And if he doesn't want money, he wants women."

Tenten felt her blood turn to ice water.

"I know the owner of the Yumuwa, and she knows you are coming. I've told her she has no reason to become too involved, but she has allowed an agent of mine to work as a servant girl at the hot springs for the duration of this mission. You must seduce him into believing you're interested in him. There's nothing that pleases a man more than thinking a beautiful lady wants him of her own will. I need him to think that he can trust you. Get something out of him that will either lead us to intercepting his plans or stop them before they happen. The last thing Konoha needs is a stealing of the medical supplies and then used for drugs. That could lead to international disputes, even war." At seeing the look on Tenten's face, Tsunade smiled reassuringly. "Look, you won't need to actually do anything. Give a little acting, but it's your discretion on how you trick him. There's nothing to—"

"Tenten can't do it." Neji's voice interposed the Hokage with calm tones, but a glance at his face showed tension on his forehead. The young female ninja shot him an expression of surprise, but he didn't return any look toward her. "She's never done anything like that before."

Tenten almost glared at her childhood team member. Even though it was true, he didn't have to say it like she was the most inexperienced girl in the world!

"Oh?" Tsunade leaned forward, cupping her chin in her palm, and her eyes sparkled with interested. "And how do you know _that_, Neji?"

"Tsunade-sama," came Shizune's exasperated plea.

"Oh, don't fuss, Shizune. Indeed, Neji, I thought about sending someone a little more, ah… _cunning_, such as Ino. But she's a little reckless, and this mission requires caution."

Neji's hand tightened almost imperceptibly on the map he held. "Also," he said, dodging the teasing question, "she's not old enough. Shinobi law states—"

"That a ninja must be eighteen years or older to go on an undercover assignment without special approval from the Hokage. I'm well aware of the rules, Neji, and I do agree that this mission isn't important enough at this point for my special approval. However…" Tsunade's voice was filled with amusement. "Tenten turns eighteen tonight at midnight. Don't you?"

Color rising in her cheeks to replace some of the paleness that had filled them, Tenten nodded wordlessly. She felt Neji's eyes on her, but this time it was she who didn't return the look.

"So that's settled then. You can leave precisely at that hour. The Yumuwa is about a half-day's journey away and it will be best you get there in the morning so that it looks like a shift change for the servant girls. I am expecting the best from you both." Tsunade flipped her blond hair over her shoulder and gave both of them a wide smile, ending on Tenten.

"Happy birthday."

* * *

Tenten normally traveled lightly, but this time she found herself hiding more kunai and shuriken on her person than she ever had before. Tsunade had even said that if there was any fighting on this mission, it would be minimal.

She was nervous. Tenten knew that and wasn't about to pretend like she wasn't – at least not to herself. Neji, however, was another story.

They met at exactly midnight at the city gates. Like her, Neji had dressed for the night, covered toe to neck in black. They were well-made for traveling in the dark, Tenten with her dark hair and eyes that would camouflage her from enemies and make her surprise attacks that much more overpowering, and Neji with his long black hair and, of course, his Byakugan.

Neji asked her with his eyes whether she was ready to go, and Tenten gave a quick bob of her head that she hoped seemed confident. In unison, they opened the two doors of the gates just enough for their slim bodies to slip through, and then it was as though they had never been in Konoha.

They set off quickly, but they didn't hurry. Jumping from tree to tree kept them out of sight and off the road, and Neji was always in front with the map and using his family technique to make sure they didn't run into anyone on the way. They had to make sure that no one who knew them saw where they went lest their identities and location were accidentally revealed.

They went in silence for three hours, and it gave Tenten time to think. Now a full adult, she didn't feel at all different. Still, she supposed she would have to prove that she could handle herself and others on this mission. Tsunade had seemed fairly lighthearted about it, but the two had been able to tell how important success was to the village. Tenten hated the fact that whenever she thought about the picture in her pocket of the cruel-looking Urume Hidegaya, a lump like a cold stone formed in the pit of her stomach and made her feel sick. If she was going to be a good ninja, she had to become indifferent. She had to be like Neji.

The thing was, Neji had not come across as indifferent when he had told the Fifth that she could not perform the task given to her. It still irritated Tenten to think that he thought her so incapable, even if she didn't know herself how she would pull through. Though he had undoubtedly just been thinking of the mission, a part of Tenten that she rarely acknowledged in herself kept proposing the possibility that Neji had been concerned for her. While she would normally destroy the thought in an instant, there was the fact that he had pressed her age to Tsunade. But that couldn't mean anything either, could it? After all, he didn't even know when her birthday was, despite their five years of knowing each other.

No, she decided firmly. Hyuuga Neji had become a man who was focused only on the goals set before him. To achieve his destiny, he would put aside all obstacles. Even if that obstacle was a comrade. Tenten _knew _that. And she had stopped hoping for anything else a long time ago.

At the end of the fourth wordless hour, she couldn't take it anymore. With a few extra jumps, she was side-by-side with her quiet partner and said, "How long until we arrive?"

"Five more hours," came the terse reply. "We'll rest soon."

Tenten internally groaned. She would never survive unless he said _something _to her. But she knew the only thing he would discuss was the mission, and she was forced to go with that. "Have you thought about how you'll approach Urume?"

"The Fifth said that he respects men of business. My family has participated in enough entrepreneur ventures that I can relate."

She nodded, an amused smile curving her lips. "So you'll act like a rich kid."

He grunted in reply, and she laughed softly. It felt for a fraction of a moment like it had been during their Team Gai days, except that Gai wasn't there to comment on her "illustrious youthful humor," and Lee wasn't there to fully agree with their sensei while tears streamed down both their faces.

But those days were done. Rarely did Gai accompany any of their missions anymore, and she had discovered that Lee was on a separate mission with Chouji. (She couldn't help but wince at the idea.)

"Have you?"

"Huh?" Tenten had been so sure that _she _would need to initiate any and all conversation that she almost missed it entirely when Neji asked the question.

When she looked at him, his face was still turned forward, his jaw set in concentration. "I said 'have you'? Thought about how you'll get Urume to trust you?"

Her heart beat a little faster, and it wasn't because she had to jump particularly high to avoid a bird's nest on a tree branch. "A little," she murmured. "I guess I'll have to be nice to him."

"How nice?"

He practically ground out the words, and Tenten pressed her lips together. "He's not going to take advantage of me, Neji. I know better than to let some pervert—"

"How will you stop him without ruining the mission?" he cut her off.

The angry heat that had built up a moment ago instantly cooled, and it was a wonder steam didn't rise from Tenten's inner thoughts. She was silent for a moment, then admitted, "I don't know yet."

"That's what you have to think about."

The anger returned, but this time the majority of it was directed at Neji. "It's also what you _don't _have to think about," she told him fiercely. "I know what I have to do. There's no leader to this team, Neji. We're working together. As equals."

He looked at her sideways with his pale eyes, but Tenten didn't see it because she was so irritated and focusing on what was ahead of her. "It's been a while," he said as though in justification.

"Maybe," she snapped. "But we're not children anymore. I can watch my own back now."

Even she didn't know why what he'd said had gotten her so worked up, but after a few minutes, Tenten told herself to calm down. Yet some of her remained disgruntled by the Hyuuga.

For the first time, Tenten was pleased by Neji's non-talkative nature.

* * *

The sun was just rising when they arrived at the Yumuwa Inn. The owner, a little wizened woman who had apparently gotten used to her establishment being used as a trapping place, was more than happy to help how she could and suggested that they both get a few hours' rest before they began with the work. Neji disliked the idea, but Tenten managed to convince him that without sleep they wouldn't be able to be as believable to Urume.

Neji was taken to the room he would use as a guest during their mission, and Tenten was shown to a set of servants' quarters and given her own small space. Before she was able to sleep, the owner showed her around the inn so that she would seem familiar with it before the rest of the guests woke up. The owner assured Tenten that she would be working mostly around Urume, according to Tsunade's orders, and her job would consist of serving tea and sake in the men's baths.

With that news, it felt like the cold stone in her stomach exploded, and her nerves battered her so hard that she had to race back to her room to be physically sick.

"You can do this," she whispered to herself once her stomach was empty. The shaking hands that she clenched into fists said otherwise. "Tenten! It's a mission. You can _do_ this!"

Who would have thought she would be such a baby? She hated herself as she lay down on the floor, sweating and almost panting as she thought of the day ahead of her. She had heard of the stage fright that actors experienced right before a performance, but she imagined that this was somehow much worse.

After several minutes of low-key panic, she replaced fear with self-impatience and reprimanded herself thoroughly. Hadn't she been angry with Neji just a few hours ago for treating her like a Genin? Sitting up and leaning back against a wall of her tiny room, she thought hard.

She had heard men in Konoha casually joke about visiting hot springs. How the girls that had served there were always coy little women who were shy and accepted teasing with a blush and a bow. How the towels around their slender bodies sometimes came close to falling off in the water…

"Damn it." _All _men were perverts, she decided viciously. She would have to watch Neji and make sure none of the other girls were catching his eye too much. After that thought, she nearly chuckled. Neji could never be so distracted. Now Tenten saw why Naruto and Kiba hadn't been candidates for this assignment.

Once she thought it through, she decided that she didn't really have it so bad. Tsunade-sama would never ask her to do something that she thought would truly endanger her, no matter how ridiculous the Hokage sometimes was. Besides, Tenten had heard stories of kunoichis going through much harder trials than what she was facing. Even Kurenai-san had undertaken some fairly degrading missions, and she had never been seriously harmed.

She went in and out of sleep for two hours before the owner came in and gave Tenten the towel she would be wearing to serve in the hot spring. Tenten half grimaced at the insubstantiality of the garment. As she busied herself by strapping kunai to her upper legs and waist, where they would be well-hidden, the owner showed her how to knot the corners of the towel beneath her right elbow so that it slipping off was close to impossible.

"When you are ready, please proceed to hot spring number two. That's the largest, where Urume-sama sepnds most of his time. Kana-sama is already there."

"Kana-sama?" The old woman nodded, and after a moment, Tenten realized she was talking about Neji. "I see," she murmured. "Thank you."

The woman left her alone, and though she had planned to take a few minutes to mentally prepare herself, she decided it would only work her up again. Picking up a tray of tea and sake that the woman had instructed her to use, Tenten took a deep breath. She hurried out of her room and through the inn until she reached the door that led out into the second hot spring.

After one more mind-clearing breath, Tenten went to her knees and slid back the rice-paper door liked a proper servant. Without raising her eyes, she switched to the other side and closed it the same way. Then she rose to her bare feet and walked in small strides to the edge of the hot spring. Narrow wooden steps had been built to lead down to a stone landing. She stepped into the steaming water with caution, careful not to tip her tray. Once she had gotten her footing, she lifted her eyes to the bathers present.

Three men were chatting amicably, wet towels folded on their heads. A fourth man, younger than the rest, was no other than Neji. His long hair had been pulled into a ponytail tied close to the base of his skull, and it altered his appearance surprisingly much. He watched the others with a steady gaze and didn't look at her. Tenten briefly wondered if she hadn't yet been noticed, and she realized that she was moving too silently, like a ninja. Girls that hadn't been trained to move like part of the night were not soundless, and she understood at once that she had to be louder. As she walked forward in the water, she did what first came to mind and made a little coughing noise.

The chatter stopped at once, something that is only natural to happen when men are distracted by a member of the opposite sex, and when all faces turned to her, Tenten immediately recognized the bright green eyes and crooked nose as belonging to Urume Hidegaya. She met his eyes before anyone else's and plastered a smile on her face.

"Good morning," she said softly. Her voice was slightly high-pitched from nerves that she had trouble getting under control, but she decided it was most likely best that way. It made her sound even younger than she was, and Urume probably liked that.

It appeared she was right because as all four men returned the greeting in kind, Urume was the loudest. A huge grin widened his face, and he didn't look at all like the picture Tsunade had shown her and Neji the day before. "It's a beautiful day, isn't it?"

Tenten inclined her head respectfully, glad that there were more people around the just Urume and Neji. It meant that she didn't have to focus so much on Urume right now. She turned first to a chubby man on her left that was closest to her. "Would you like tea or sake?" she asked politely, offering the contents of her floating tray.

The man smiled somewhat shyly at her, and she concluded he was just a normal guest rather than an associate of Urume's. Taking a cup from the tray, he held it out with pudgy fingers. "Tea, please, miss. It's too early for sake."

"Oh, surely not, Jurishi-san!" chortled Urume from behind her, and Tenten felt goose-bumps sprout up on the back of her neck. His voice was lighthearted but the potential for darkness was there. "The morning's half gone. I'll take sake."

Taking his announcement as a sort of cue, Tenten hardened her smile and turned around to face him directly. "Of course," she murmured, trying to sound gracious. She approached him more cautiously than she probably should have, but Urume didn't notice. She poured him sake without her hand shaking, something she was very proud of. She felt his eyes remain on her as she moved to the muscular man sitting near him who was without a doubt his bodyguard. He said nothing of which beverage he preferred, so Tenten took a guess and held a cup of tea out to him.

The bodyguard studied her face closely as he took the cup from her hand. The man was so big that the towel on his head made him look amusing, but no one would dare to laugh. He spoke without warning: "We haven't seen you here before, Urume-sama and I."

"Oh." Tenten scrambled for a story, something that would sound real and not made-up on the spot. "Well, I—"

"Amaya usually only works here in the fall. She's not a full-time servant." Neji's voice was calm and sounded almost bored as he explained. Relief flooded her, and she slackened her tense shoulders as she turned to him with her tray.

Neji regarded her as any normal rich man would regard ant normal servant girl – with detached interest, which was truthfully not too different from how he really did treat her these days. "Tea," he told her simply and held out a cup for her to fill. She did so with ease, mentally thanking Neji's fast thinking.

"You seem to know her well," commented Urume with interest. "But I've never seen you here before either."

Neji smiled with unreal ease. He didn't fully smile often, and Tenten was impressed by how comfortable he made himself look. "I usually only come here in the fall as well."

Urume raised an eyebrow and cast a look at Tenten. "I can see why. What did you say your name was?"

"Hiraya Kana," lied the Hyuuga without batting an eyelash. Tenten wondered just how many undercover missions Neji had been on.

"Nice to meet you," Urume said with pleasantness, "but I meant the girl."

This time she managed to answer for herself. "Amaya," she murmured. Turning to look at Urume, she bowed as best she could in the water. "Takane Amaya."

"Takane," Urume repeated thoughtfully, "Amaya." After a moment, his smile returned full-force and his tone lightened. "It seems you're the star here."

After studying him for just a moment, Tenten felt some of the nervousness seep out of her. There was something about the way he watched her that made her feel suddenly more confident about her mission. Remembering what the villagers back home had said about hot spring girls, she attempted a playful smile like the ones Ino was so good at and held out the sake bottle to refill his glass.

"I don't know, Urume-sama. Perhaps it is _you _that is the star."

* * *

To Be Continued.

Please Review!


	2. Catching Attention

**A/N: **Wow, I was and still am so overcome by what a warm reception I've been given by the Naruto fandom. And with such intelligent questions and awesome enthusiasm, you all are positively inspiring! Thank you, really.

Note: To those who inquired about Goldberry, she pretty much IS my sensei. In a Gai/Lee way even. BERRY-SENSEI! MY YOUTHFUL RAYS OF DETERMINATION ARE BURNING! (We are also very silly people.)

Bride of Note: I feel it's only fair to warn you that I am NOT a person with a huge amount of time on their hands and that I don't possess awesome updating powers. The reason this chapter is up so quickly is because I had a 15-hour car ride today (coming home from vacation) and fortunately my laptop with with me. Which means the story came out really soon yaaaay!

Disclaimer: As always, no ownership of _Naruto_ do I have. And very little money, I'm afraid.

**Mature Intentions**

Part Two: Catching Attention

By Nessie

The first day at the Yumuwa Inn was relatively painless to Tenten. After that first half-hour in the hot spring, the men retired to their own devices for the day. For Neji this meant spending some time in his room and trying to figure out what kind of ways he could touch the subject of dealing with Urume Hidegaya. In Tenten's case, she spent hardly any time at all in her little room and instead did what she could to help around the inn in exchange for being allowed to operate there. The elderly owner didn't mind the help at all, and when it came time to deliver evening meals, she stacked two trays atop each other and went first to Neji's room.

"Kana-sama," she called from the corridor outside his door. She didn't at all like using false names.

"Come in," he replied without delay, and Tenten entered swiftly, closing the door behind her. She found Neji sitting cross-legged in the center of the room, papers and files scattered about him. It took him several moments to finish what he was reading, but when he did, he tossed down the paper with a careless flick of his hand, and then used that hand to tiredly rub his eyes. "And reading is supposed to be relaxing," he muttered.

She found herself smiling. "You wouldn't be so exhausted if you ate something," she suggested, setting the tray down in front of him and then kneeling on the other side of it. "Did you find anything useful?"

"These are just records of some past Hyuuga family excursions into business. Hinata took them from her father's study and loaned them out to me." He took a rice ball from the tray, raised it to his mouth, and finally looked at her. He paused open-mouthed and just let his jaw hang as he took in her appearance. Tenten was about to go on the defensive before alertness returned to his light-colored eyes and he asked, "Where did you get that?"

"What?" She followed his gaze and glanced down at herself. Yards of dark blue silk, patterned with tiny pink rosebuds, all connected by thread of light green covered her from her ankles to halfway up her neck in the traditional style of a Japanese kimono, except that it was made a dress by a Chinese collar instead of a frontal fold. Rather than long flowing sleeves, only her shoulders were covered for the summer heat. "Oh, well—" She grinned somewhat sheepishly. "Baa-chan – this inn's owner – is letting me wear it for awhile. Most of the girls wear kimonos, but she thought…she said I was a special servant, so…" She realized she was blabbering and cut herself short. "It's for the mission," she said at last.

By this time Neji had returned his attention to alternating between his work and his food. "I see," he muttered inattentively.

Tenten's eyes narrowed, and she exhaled sharply. "Anyway," she said, her voice coming out more sharply than intended, "I'm off to take Urume his dinner." Sliding a foot forward, she rose and went to the door.

"Stop!"

Startled, Tenten's face snapped back toward him. "What's wrong?" She thought he might have landed on something crucial for the mission.

Instead, Neji was staring at her as though he had never seen her in his life. "What is _that_?"

She looked down at herself expecting that a huge insect or something had landed on her right leg, but upon inspection she found that there was nothing on her leg – literally. Not even silk covered it, for there was a long slit from the hem to the middle of her thigh. Tenten shrugged. "Thank goodness it's there," she told Neji. "It would have been terrible walking in this thing without it."

"I guess so," came the quiet reply.

"I'll bring you a yukata later. That'll be much more comfortable than wearing your village clothes every day."

Turning away, she did not see the dark look that crossed the Hyuuga's face as she left.

* * *

Urume's room was in the hall next to Neji's, and Tenten rapped gently on the wooden panel of his door. "Your meal, Urume-sama," she called to him.

His voice was a far cry different from Neji's, deeper and even gruffer. "You may enter."

She stepped in with ninja training that managed to come off as graceful. Before even looking at him, she dipped to her knees in a graceful bow, and then picked up the last tray of food and turned her gaze up.

Compared to Neji's bland, bare-walled guest room, Urume's room was a cornucopia of color and wealth. Elegant painted scrolls graced the walls, and intricately-woven tatamis covered the floor. The main attraction of the room, however, was the sophisticated Western-style bed with a headboard and rungs that she suspected were made of pure silver. Dozens of ivory pillows stood out against a deep green comforter. Inside, Tenten despised the luxuries for their beauty. Men like Urume who were criminals deserved nothing so fancy.

"Ah, Amaya-chan."

Hearing her false name, she made sure her smile was in place and turned her attention to Urume. The crime lord already had his eyes trained on her. "I'm sorry," she apologized in recovery. "I was distracted by your room. You have many pretty things."

"I tend to appreciate beauty over much else. I cannot be somewhere that has no beauty," he told her calmly, a pleasant look on his face. "You have brought me my meal, I see. You are very kind."

"I'm only doing what I'm paid for," she said in an automatic attempt to hurry, but then Tenten remembered what she had to do. Telling herself to slow down, she said, "I hope you like curry."

"It's my favorite," he assured her. He watched her closely as she kneeled in front of him to present his food. "That's quite a dress."

"It belongs to the owner. I'm borrowing a few things from her for while I work here." That much, at least, was true. "I admit I come from a poor family, and my things would not do for living in such a nice inn."

"On the contrary," said Urume as he lifted a spoonful of curry to his lips, "I thought you looked splendid this morning." In nothing but that damn towel, Tenten mentally finished for him. He ate a couple more spoonfuls, and she wished she could feed him some of the Curry of Life that Lee so favored. _That _would turn his smug head. "The dress looks far better on you than it would on the old lady, anyhow. Since you're dressed so nicely, why don't you join me?"

"Oh!" Thinking fast, she held up a hand to cover a very forced smile of flattery. "I've already had my dinner, Urume-sama. But thank you."

"That's a shame." Setting down his spoon, he picked up instead his cup of green tea and studied her over the rim of the cup as she began to move to her feet to leave. "Ayame-chan," he said quietly. "I have not dismissed you yet."

Tenten's stomach dropped. He actually wanted to talk to her. Well, she supposed it had to happen sometimes, and sooner was better than later. Saying nothing, she resumed her sitting position and waited for him to speak.

"I'm simply fascinated. I come to this very inn for a time every single summer – it has been so for the past five years – yet I have never seen you once." He tipped his head back as he looked at her, and his shoulder-length dark hair fell back away from his face, making his green eyes seem even brighter. "What's your story?"

Tenten bowed her head, mind racing in search of holes in the question. "Sir, as Hiraya-sama told you, I normally only work here in the fall."

"And why is that? Family reasons, I presume."

"Yes." But it would best, Tenten reasoned, to tell him that she had no relations in case it turned out that he was so insane that he would seek them out for some reason. "I come from a family of rice farmers. I usually harvest with them in the summer, but…"

"But what?" he pressed when she trailed. Urume's smile suddenly softened further, and Tenten was momentarily surprised at how gentle he looked. "Amaya-chan, you don't have to tell me if—"

"No," she interrupted, hoping she sounded eager. "My…my parents and brother died last winter. Influenza," she muttered, and almost immediately realized how ridiculous that sounded since the flu was easily cured in any village.

However, Urume surprisingly ate it up. "That's terrible," he murmured sympathetically. "My poor dear. And you can't be older than… Well, how old are you?"

"Sev…" She paused. Like most people, she wasn't yet used to thinking of herself as eighteen so soon after her birthday. Rather than correct herself, she guessed that Urume would be even more pleased by a seventeen-year-old girl than an eighteen-year-old one. "Seventeen."

"How young!" It seemed he had forgotten his meal entirely and instead leaned forward, his whole self captivated by her story that was so nearly obviously untrue. "Far too young to be working so hard, I should think."

"But this work isn't hard at all," she protested with a genuine laugh. If Urume thought she was a little feathery flower, she thought he should have seen her fight in the Chuunin Exam the year she had passed it. Then he would see some _hard work_.

"But a girl so beautiful…" A thoughtful expression crossed his face. "Ryo won't like it at all," he murmured, mostly to himself (Tenten had learned that Ryo was Urume Hidegaya's bodyguard), "but I insist. I'll speak to the old lady. I shall get her to lend you to me as my private assistant for my stay at this inn."

"I couldn't!" Cursing foully in her head, Tenten lifted the food tray even though she wasn't sure if he had finished or not and used it as a physical barrier between Urume and herself. "I'm paid to do what the owner tells me. If you—"

"It will be perfectly alright," he smiled calmly. "What do you think, Amaya-chan? Can you fetch my slippers and hold my tea for me in the hot spring if I need you to? I promise to reward you handsomely before I leave."

Tenten longed to tell Urume precisely what she thought, but she didn't come close to forgetting her duty for Konoha. Instead, she stood up and, fighting back an urge to kick Urume in the head when his gaze strayed to her bare thigh, bent at the waist.

"If you can arrange it," she said, sounding sweeter than a morning nightingale and feeling as ill as Lee tended to after a drop of alcohol, "I would be honored." Going to the door in deliberately slow movements, she turned and bowed once more. "Sleep well, Urume-sama."

He gave a slight nod, his green eyes glinting. "Goodnight, Amaya-chan."

Leaving, Tenten realized just how tightly she was clenching the edges of the wooden tray of now-cold food. Let him be hungry, she thought bitterly. A minor inconvenience would do him some good.

One thing was certain. She wasn't afraid of Urume Hidegaya.

He made Tenten angry as hell.

* * *

Apparently, she wasn't the only one that Urume infuriated. Though she had been around Neji so little in the last few years that she was a little rusty on gauging his emotions, she managed to label his way of barging in her room as being "ticked off." His words suggested more depth was involved, however.

"What the hell did you do?"

His voice was very steady and very quiet, so the average listener would have thought of him as quite calm. But since Tenten usually suspected Neji of buckling down his true feelings, there was a fairly good chance of him being far more unsettled.

Yet Tenten supposed she _could _have been wrong. She had to consider that her current position left her little room to be particularly clever at this moment. Because, in true Neji fashion, he had focused on nothing but possible danger to the mission, and he had come into Tenten's room without first checking if it was well for him to do so. Had he asked, Tenten would have had him wait.

The reason for this was that, as of two minutes ago, she had returned from the shower and was presently toweling herself dry. Other than that insufficient strip of cotton, covering no specific places, she was completely and entirely naked.

"Neji!" she squealed in unpleasant surprise, turning away and curling herself into a ball in a reflexive attempt to salvage any modesty that she could.

As usual, Tenten didn't see Neji's focused expression totally drop from his features to be replaced with one of off-guardedness, shortly followed by as much embarrassment as Neji was capable of displaying. Wordlessly, he swiveled and stepped close to a corner of the room, keeping his eyes trained on the line that separated two of the walls as though it held the secret to becoming the best shinobi in history. "I'm not looking," he called stoically.

Tenten threw a glare over her shoulder, but the look was rendered useless when she saw him standing in the corner like a misbehaved little boy. She desperately bit back the urge to laugh. Instead, an exasperated "_thank _you" was all she could manage.

She dressed hastily, pulling on a pair of brown spandex shorts and a loose white tank top that she wore as pajamas. Reaching for a comb, she squeezed some excess water from her mahogany hair. This time when she looked at him, it was with practiced patience. "What are you doing, Neji? It's nearly midnight. Shouldn't you be—"

"I overheard Urume talking with the owner." He turned, perhaps with more caution than he was accustomed to using. Once he had ascertained that Tenten was indeed decent, he leaned against the wall he'd been facing. There was certainly something fiery in his eyes, and Tenten half-thought she liked it. "He was making a deal with her, Tenten, to have you serve him."

She lowered her eyes to the comb she was dragging nervously through her damp and tangled tresses. "I thought that was the deal already."

"_In private_," he growled out. "What did he say to you exactly?"

Tenten stood up and went to her backpack and fished out a hair tie. "He was interested. He felt sorry for Amaya, an orphan who has just lost her family to the flu. If you're going to know me on this mission, I think Hiraya Kana should know about Takane Amaya's unfortunate circumstances."

He had seemed a bit taken aback with her lame story, which was exactly what she had expected from Urume. Tenten went on. "So far, though I haven't gotten anything out of him, this mission's going as planned on my part. Tsunade-sama said—"

"She said you didn't have to do anything."

"Neji." She gave a sort of shocked chuckle, which was really just a fast expelling of breath. "What kind of amateur do you think I am? You _know _how I fight. I keep at least fifteen kunai and ten shuriken on me all the time. I didn't bring makeup in this backpack, you know..." A curious look came upon her. "Actually, do you think—"

"No," he said firmly. "I don't think you need makeup. I think you're going about this the wrong way."

"_What _way?" she demanded. "At least I—ow!" Shaking her fingers, she saw that her hair tie had snapped when she had tried to put up her hair with it. It had sprung from her hair and was now on the floor by her foot, a useless, limp string.

Tenten sighed and lifted her eyes to Neji's with restored calm. "Neji. I know you've gotten used to working with guys. And I know that when we were teammates we never did any missions like…this," she finished after hunting for a good term and failing to find one. "I already told you that Urume has no chance of taking advantage of me."

He had an eyebrow lifted at her, and the curse seal on his forehead, which Tenten had never given a second thought to, now made him look somewhat threatening without his Konoha forehead protector to hide it. "He didn't have that big guy Ryo there to discourage anything. Are you sure you can handle him, Tenten?"

Determined not to be intimidated, especially by her mission partner (and especially because it was Neji), Tenten squared her shoulders. "Even if Amaya can't," she retorted, "_I _can."

"Fine." Neji seemed to accept his lack of control over her decisions and headed for the door. "I'll talk to Urume tomorrow."

"Good luck." Tenten said it more from habit with Lee than she actually meant it. Almost in afterthought, she added, "Neji."

The Hyuuga turned back, his features purposely revealing nothing to her.

Tenten gave him a teasing look, although some of her initial annoyance still came through. "The next time you decide to come see me in a fit of rage, you better knock."

Something about Neji relaxed, but in the few seconds she had to notice the change, Tenten couldn't distinguish what it was. "I've never seen your hair down," he said simply. This caught her off-guard, but the effect was nothing compared to the tiny, almost internal smile that crossed his face right before he went out.

As the door shut behind him, Tenten felt herself filled wholly with a confusing combination of frustration and flattery. She served the frustrating by taking the comb in her hand and hurling it at the place where Neji's head had just been. Once it smacked against the door and fell to the floor, there was a bright pink blush heating her cheeks. She sunk down against the wall, hugging her knees to her chest.

There were two men that made her angry. One was Urume Hidegaya, whom she had expected it from and who managed to still hold her temper down with ridiculous shows of empathy. The other was, of course, Hyuuga Neji, whom kept doubting her ability and accused her of endangering herself without having accomplished anything on his side of the work.

It would be a wonder if she didn't kill one or both of them before this mission came to an end.

* * *

The owner, or more affectionately known as Baa-chan to her servant girls, made it clear to Tenten that it was up to her how she convinced Urume that she had a wish to serve him, not just as an employee but personally. Still, Tenten could see that Baa-chan also hoped Tenten wouldn't ruin Urume as a customer.

"Don't worry," Tenten had smiled at her, "any money he gives me is going to go to this inn anyway." She meant it; she didn't want any kind of cash that came from being obedient to someone like Urume, who would rather use medicine to harm people instead of save them.

She officially began her private service to Urume the day following her argument with Neji. Once again, she was to be in hot spring number two with a bunch of shirtless men wearing nothing but the towel she had come to hate. This time she double-knotted the cloth before going out with her beverage tray.

The chubby Jurishi-san was not in the hot spring today, but there was still Urume, his bodyguard Ryo, and Neji. When she called her cheerful "Good morning," she smiled as though this hot spring was heaven and the men around her were angels. The truth was, the only one close to an angel would be Neji, and she had always seen him as more a white devil.

Today she served Urume first, bringing him his sake and an additional specialty of a bunch of green grapes on a small plate. She caught him sitting up a little straighter against the cool rock, and he took the ludicrous towel off of his head.

"Good morning, Amaya-chan," Urume said to her with a slight grin upon seeing the fruit. "I trust you slept well your first summer night here."

"Urume-sama is too kind," she said politely. "I slept very well. Shall I serve your companions?"

"Of course, I could never be so rude as to ignore my friends. Please, join me in some sake, Ryo. You too, Hiraya-san."

"Forgive me," Neji said in a tone that was almost friendly. Tenten didn't look at him, but she wondered if he had a cord of tension straightening spine. "I'm never able to drink sake until at least sunset."

"That's a shame," replied Urume as Ryo accepted a cup. "Next time, Amaya-chan, you'll have to remember to bring some tea for Hiraya-san." His eyes flashed as he looked between her and Neji. "Well, since you know each other, maybe you think something weaker, such as water, would suffice?"

The jibe was well-masked, but both Neji and Tenten were too quick to miss it. Tenten's amiable smile would have fallen, but she had set it so hard into her mouth that to smash it a hammer might have been required. As for Neji, he only responded with a smirk that made him look disturbingly like his uncle. And as far as Tenten could tell, he had no tension whatsoever.

"Now, now," admonished 'Hiraya Kana' jokingly, "you wouldn't say something like that about a potential client, would you, Urume-san?"

"Oh?" Urume's eyebrows rose. "I had no idea you were a businessman."

"Just a little." The truth made Neji's words that much more believable. "The Hirayas dapple in economics, mostly in the village of Sand."

_Good thinking, Neji_, mused Tenten as she sat quietly by. They could message the Sand village, and if Urume decided to check up on Neji's background, Gaara and his siblings could back them up. Temari and Tenten held a special respect for each other, and the Konoha woman was confident that the she, at least, would be willing to help.

Urume laughed. "Ha, that poor village _would_ need it most! Well, Hiraya-san, I can see that you're a person who should learn to relax. You've said you are twenty – a man so young should not be as work-oriented as you. You need some fun. I have…"

He trailed off when he saw that Neji was looking at Tenten. Tenten had noticed the same thing moments earlier and couldn't help feeling that Neji was staring too intently – both because he could blow their cover and because she didn't like standing so immodestly in front of him. Urume and Ryo didn't bother her nearly as much, but she had grown up with Neji. He had known her before…well, before there had even been anything on her body that needed to be hidden.

At the intensity of his gaze, she felt her face go flush involuntarily. Had she been allowed to be herself, she'd have hissed at him to quit staring at her and he most likely would have shrugged and looked at the clouds as though they were just as interesting. As it was, she could only lower her eyes to the tray she was in charge of and hope nothing bad happened.

It seemed her hoping worked because Urume followed Neji's line of vision and chuckled a little at her. "Oh, gentlemen, it seems our sweet Amaya-chan is embarrassed by her lack of knowledge on our topic." Wading over to her, he set a hand on her naked shoulder. Tenten at first had the urge to jerk away, but she had schooled herself to expect minor touches and only reacted by closing her eyes for a few seconds. "This is no talk for a lovely woman anyway. Why don't you give us a few minutes, Amaya-chan, and get some tea for Hiraya-san?"

"I'll deliver it to his room." She bowed her head graciously and left the hot-spring after bowing in the direction of both Ryo and Neji. She met Neji's eyes for a brief second and knew he understood her message: _Tell me everything later_.

Tenten was more than happy to get out of the steamy hot tub and put on some real clothes. As she was going inside the inn, she heard Urume's voice: "Now, Hiraya-san, I must tell you that I am about to have my hands on a novel product that I think you'll find…"

Disgusted by the diplomatic way Urume spoke about useful medicines serving a purpose no better than opium, she flung her bedroom door shut behind her and began to quickly strip and redress herself in a flowing sleeveless kimono that was dark purple, patterned with white crescent moons. The garment had been stylishly cut to trail farther in the back than it did in the front, and Tenten thought if she ever had a good reason for wearing something this foolish in Konoha, she would want it to be similar to this.

It took her ten minutes to get the light blue obi tied around her waist relatively well and five more minutes to secure again all her concealed weaponry. She had just redone her hair from when it had gone sloppy in the hot spring when there was a knock on her door.

She expected Neji had come to let her know what had transpired with Urume and his silent guard. Using the small mirror that all good ninjas carried with them at all times, she unconsciously checked her appearance and then went to the door.

Instead of the open panel bringing her face-to-face with the Hyuuga come to report his progress with their target, she was instead looking at Urume Hidegaya himself, dressed thankfully in a yukata instead of just the towel around his waist in the hot spring. Surprise knocked her off mental balance for a moment, and when a shocked "Urume-sama" popped out of her mouth, it was genuine.

"Oh, good. So they gave me the right room after all." Propping an arm up on the doorframe, Urume looked down at her with a grin that even Tenten had to admit was handsome. "I know you hotel girls like to play jokes. I was certain that the old lady was going to open the door."

The thought of Baa-chan, with her wrinkles and sagging kimono, coming out when Urume had expected Tenten actually had the kunoichi laughing. "That would have been funny," she commented amusedly.

"I wanted to catch you early," said Urume. "You haven't had tonight's dinner yet, have you, Amaya-chan?"

She smiled because the idea was silly. "Of course not. Lunch was only two hours ago."

"Excellent. Then you have no reason for not joining me tonight."

Tenten thought about it, then shrugged carelessly. "You're right."

"Meet me in my room at a quarter after seven. I'll have someone else bring the food. All you need do is show up." Urume took a couple of steps backward. "I'd say that you should pretty yourself up, but there's really no need for you to try."

His voice was slick and as Tenten watched him, she thought that he didn't really seem very mean at all. "It will honor me, Urume-sama." She didn't realize that these words were her most convincing ones yet.

"Amaya-chan." He turned away and left her to stare at his back as he walked off. "Me too."

As Tenten went back inside, she ran her hands absent-mindedly over the skirt of her kimono. Although she didn't know why, she found herself still smiling.

* * *

Please Review! 


	3. Emptying The World

**A/N**: No, I have no time. Really, I mean it. _Grin _As always, thanks to everyone who has been saying all those way-too-nice things about this fic. You all are so supportive! Except for Berry-sensei, who, while you are the reason MY HEART IS BURSTING WITH YOUTHFUL ENERGY, is just insane. :-P And double points to those who wondered about Neji's curse seal…

**Note**: About how much I suck, I have not read a whole lot of the manga, mainly I have not read any of Naruto II. Soooo I did not know until a Wikipedia excursion that Neji is now a Jounin. Sorry! For the sake the fic, let's go with him being a Chuunin and thus in Tenten's rank.

**Warning**: This is where the "mature" rating really kicks in.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own _Naruto_. Le sigh.

**Mature Intentions**

Part Three: Emptying The World

By Nessie

Seven-fifteen came quickly. After helping Baa-chan to wash some of the towels used in the hot springs, which must have totaled at least three-hundred, Tenten had worked up quite an appetite. She had just enough time to retreat back to her room to redo her hair for the third time that day before she took off for Urume Hidegaya's room on the other side of the inn. This time she secured the buns on her head with a pair of jade ornament sticks that Sakura had given Tenten for her last birthday.

The sun was setting, and orange light poured in shafts through each of the windows in the halls. The place was strangely quiet, making the inn feel like a church instead of a tourist trap for hot spring lovers. Every other couple or minutes or so, Tenten would pass another servant girl, and they would all look at her strangely. She understood that her abrupt addition to the staff would cause some questions to sprout up, but she honestly didn't have any clue as to why these shy women, not much older than herself, would stare at her so. It seemed she was the object of some quiet discussions as well, because there were also a few girls that were bolder than the others who would see her and instantly erupt with cruel-sounding snickering.

Tenten shook her head fervently and did not allow her mind to dwell on it. She was here for a mission. She was here to perform a duty that would protect a home she loved. She just wished that she didn't have to remind herself of that fact so many times, because each time she did the words sounded more and more hollow.

Upon arriving outside Urume's guest room, she saw that tonight Ryo stood next to the door like a sentry, and she grinned inwardly. He was so tall and broad that he dwarfed the whole inn; she even though he might be bending at the knees a bit so that he didn't hit his head on the fairly low ceiling.

She went up to him and bowed low. Even though she was hardly a fifth of his size, she was able to determine what pressure points she could attack that would send him falling harder than a boulder to the floor (just in case). "Good evening, Ryo-sama."

Not prone to conversation, the giant of a man gave a curt nod. She smiled up at him. It was too bad, Tenten thought. He would make a very fearful ninja, but the way he moved – even nodding – told her that he hadn't been trained in the ways of shinobi. Perhaps he knew kendo and had a sword stashed on him somewhere.

While she was considering the bodyguard's possible battle knowledge, the sliding door to Urume's room snapped open, and an impatient Urume appeared. He barked out at Ryo, "Isn't she here ye—" The angry question was swallowed as his eyes landed on her. "Ah, Amaya-chan," he greeted, and this time his voice was full of its usual friendliness. Tenten felt herself from the tension his negative entrance had created. "Right on time. I knew you would be."

Had she been any other girl, she probably would have sweat with exasperation. _What a liar!_ As it was, she simply bowed to him in the same way she had bowed to Ryo. "Urume-sama is very kind to invite me to eat in his presence."

"My dear, you must stop speaking of me as though I am some deity." But every syllable belied his outward show of being pleased. "I'm nothing more than a man who wishes for the company of a good-looking woman."

Everyone who had ever known Tenten would tell others that she was certainly not one to be swept away by compliments toward her own beauty – a beauty she had never truly thought about before. Everyone would say that Tenten had no care for being lavished with praise.

In this respect, everyone would normally be utterly correct. However, it was probable that none of those people would take into account that Tenten had _never _been lavished with praise for anything outside of her skill as a kunoichi. She had never even been approached romantically; not because young men did not find her attractive, but rather because she was often thought to be "watched over" by Hyuuga Neji since they had been on the same team for so long. That thought alone was enough to scare off any hopeful person seeking to catch Tenten's eye.

So when Tenten was thoroughly embarrassed by Urume's words, it was only to be expected. "Thank you, Urume-sama…" She hunted for a change of topic. "Is there anything I can—"

"You're not in my service tonight," he interjected. Taking her hand (Tenten had one of her urges to draw away, but this time it was not so strong), Urume led her into his room. Ryo slid the door shut after they had entered, and Tenten realized there was nothing she could do now if she wanted to get out of her present situation.

The final rays of sundown had nearly faded now, and she saw that the room had been prepared with tall wax candles instead of normal lanterns. Something about the atmosphere appealed to Tenten as light flickered and danced over the colored tatamis on the floor and the painted wall scrolls. She saw his low table laden with plates of food – squid and soba and udon, things not served at the inn – and a pot of steaming tea. A sake bottle and a glass container of a liquid she didn't recognize were there as well and Tenten stared at them as she lowered herself onto one of the embroidered floor cushions. She had deliberately sat on the side of the table that faced the door so that if something happened, she would see it before Urume did – although she had no clue what she thought could possibly happen.

Interested, she picked up a pair of glistening chopsticks that appeared to be made of silver. Looking up at Urume, she said, "You seem to have an expensive taste for dining." That would explain a bit of why he had eaten so little of the plain meal the previous night.

"Actually," Urume smiled as he sat down across from her, "this is a special evening. I rented many of these things. But I did buy the teapot." He motioned to the delicate teapot that boasted a hand-painted mountain range.

"It's nice," Tenten assured him. She was not so taken in by extravagance. Reaching for the object in question, she held it toward his cup, which was undoubtedly of great value by itself. "Tea?"

"No. I wanted you to try something with me." He gently placed his hand over hers that gripped the teapot's handle and guided it back down to the table. He instead took up the glass container. The liquid inside was amber and gleamed like gold in the candlelight.

"What is it?"

"I obtained this from an associate of mine from the Hidden Cloud." He took a moment to study the beverage himself before meeting her eyes again. "He tells me they make it there, but I have reason to believe he got it from America. Why don't you sample it for me?"

Tenten was a good ninja, and like any good ninja, she knew better than to eat or drink of another's offer before that person had done so first. "Oh, please," she replied, putting on a shy face. "I have a…slight problem with trying something I've never had before. Why don't you taste it first, Urume-sama? Then you can tell me if it's good or not."

"Amaya-chan, you are adorable." Happy with how she put him before her, Urume unscrewed the lid of the bottle and poured some of the amber liquid into his cup. "Very well. Here goes." He quickly tossed back the drink. His eyes widened for a moment, but he recovered in little time and gave her a grin. "It packs a punch," he said, laughing a little. Tenten could see his upper lip gleaming with slight perspiration, but he didn't look at all uncomfortable.

Taking her cup, he poured for her. "I now have an idea as to why they call this 'whisky.' But here, it's your turn, Amaya-chan. It's quite unusual. You should try something new every once in a while."

"Of…of course," she said, feeling a little skeptical even though Urume obviously wasn't poisoning her. Lifting the cup close to her chin, she smelled the beverage and though its scent was something odd, it had nothing in it that Tenten thought would hurt her. She put the cup to her lips, intending to take a small sip.

"No, no, Amaya-chan. You mustn't drink it so nervously. You have to down it as though it would save your life, like medicine." So saying, he demonstrated his point by again throwing the whisky into his mouth and swallowing hard.

Tenten found it ironic that he would mention medicine as being something for positive use. "I understand." Seeing that there was no way to avoid it, she ignored her hesitation and quickly swallowed the whisky, treating it as though it _was_ medicine, one she didn't want to take.

The beverage was horribly bitter, and it seemed to crawl down her throat like fire to her gut, leaving a burning trail. She winced and had to swallow again before she felt at all easy. "I…I'm sorry, Urume-sama," she managed. "I can't abide this at all."

He nodded sympathetically. "You're right. I shouldn't have expected such a delicate creature to enjoy strong alcohol. I apologize." Taking back her cup with a deliberate brush over her knuckles, he went to the window and dumped the despicable drink onto the grass.

Tenten poured herself tea and drank it eagerly to get the other taste out of her mouth. She began to relax after that and tried to comfort him where her rejection of his present had possibly hurt him by taking up her chopsticks. "Shall we eat?"

Urume lifted his own chopsticks. "Itkadakimasu, Amaya-chan."

The food was good. Tenten especially liked the gyooza oranges in her udon noodles and smiled because she thought Naruto would have devoured the meal like mad.

"You enjoy it?"

"Yes," she told him honestly. "It's some of the best food I ever had."

"I ordered it from a village called Konoha. I assume you've heard of it?"

Tenten felt something inside of her still, as though remembering her mission had quieted a part of her that had grown rowdy with the food. "I think so. Isn't it south of here?" she asked, playing ignorant.

"North," he corrected. "It's a very quaint little village. The people there, I must say, are rather naïve."

At that, Tenten felt something inside her flare, but it was more spirit than temper. "Oh?" She did well, sounding curious and not annoyed. "How so, Urume-sama?"

"The whole village treats each other like family. But not everyone can love each other so much. I hear their Hokage would rather gamble than attend to the people. How wise of a decision can that be in a leader?" He widened his smile and gave her unoccupied hand a pat. "But I won't bore you with talk of such foolish people."

It was then that Tsunade's voice came to Tenten's head, probably since he had mentioned her: "_You must seduce him into believe that you're interested in him. There's nothing that pleases a man more than thinking a beautiful lady wants him of her own will."_

"No, please tell me," she said hurriedly. "I mean…I have never left this area. I wish to know what other places are like. Tell me of Konoha."

Here was a chance, Tenten thought, to get him to reveal something of his plan. But she would have to be careful, since it was possible that Ryo was listening to them from outside. He might be more immune to Tenten's charm and stop Urume from saying anything of importance.

Urume, having finished his meal, set down his chopsticks and stared at her. He leaned forward and balanced his chin on his overlapped hands. "I suppose I could tell you of their carving. They do have an enormous sculpture of their Hokages that is rather impressive. So far, there's only four, but I imagine that Fifth will be added soon enough. I'll say one thing about that Hokage, she's got a lot of talent as a doctor. Her medicines are worth quite a price."

"Do they sell them?" she inquired, knowing fully well that Konoha did not market though cures but rather trained people to make them.

"No, the fools," Urume answered harshly. "It would be an amazing profit to them if they did, but they're such idiots that they sometimes give them away when need is reported."

Tenten took a risk by saying, "Isn't that a noble thing to do?"

Urume chuckled and shook his head. "Such a kind person _would _say that. No, Amaya-chan, not in the world of business it isn't. I bet your friend Hiraya could tell you that."

Thinking of Neji, she tried using him as an angle. "Did you and Hiraya-sama make a business arrangement this morning?"

"We did, in fact. He surprised me. I wouldn't expect such a young, stern person to heckle so well." That pleased Tenten; at least Neji had gotten something out of poring over those old Hyuuga records all night. "He is unusual. He must have some very interesting genes with those eyes. And that mark on his forehead!"

"Oh," Tenten forced a chuckle, "I'm afraid that is a tattoo. Hiraya-sama had a year of rebellion when we were younger. His parents did not like the tattoo at all."

"You two must be close," commented Urume, a note of interest entering his voice. "How long have you known each other?"

"My…" Tenten had trouble thinking fast enough, and she played up the slowness as bashfulness. "My family sold most of our rice to the Hirayas. They paid the best for it."

Though he looked hardly impressed, he said, "That's nothing to be ashamed of. We meet people through many ways. Look at us." He rose and Tenten did the same. "I am _very _happy to know you, even if I am paying you for your services." Urume took a step around the table, coming closer to her.

"I…" Tenten stood her ground until he had rounded the table to her side. "I agree."

"And you see, I consider myself so lucky to know you. I don't think I would ever find a lovelier woman elsewhere." When he invaded her personal space, Tenten took a step backward. "Do you believe in fate, Amaya-chan?"

Hearing that word, Tenten thought of Neji, but Urume's bright green eyes filled her vision and pushed images of her childhood teammate from her mind. "I suppose so, Urume-sama."

He had backed her up nearly to the wall now. When Tenten's spine hit wood, she felt her entire body grow warm. His chest was little more than a scant three inches away from hers.

"I am working on a project, Amaya-chan." Slowly, Urume's right hand came up near her neck and took the left side of her kimono's collar between his thumb and forefinger. Sliding his fingers over the silk, he didn't actually touch her flesh, but Tenten felt a nerve jingle in response. She just couldn't name why. "I'll soon be making a deal with some people that will really strengthen my position in the world. And I've always hoped to have someone who would appreciate it…"

Tenten was trying her hardest to focus on his words, but Urume was now lifting his free left hand up to her head. He tenderly removed the ornament stick from the right bun, and lush brown hair cascaded down in a wavy waterfall nearly to her elbow.

"You are a gracious woman, Amaya-chan," continued Urume. "I don't expect you know that."

Tenten kept her eyes on his, her gaze half-lidded. It distracted him as she discreetly brought one hand behind her to the small of her back, where it wrapped around the handle of a kunai she had concealed in her obi. "Urume-sama is so kind," she murmured softly. "But what kind of people could possibly make you so strong?"

It was the moment of truth. Something unfamiliar suddenly glazed over Urume's eyes, and without warning, he pulled Tenten against his chest and turned his face into the recently-freed hair. When he inhaled deeply, Tenten's grip tightened on the kunai. She shut her eyes and bore it with far less difficulty than she suspected. The shudder that broke over her surprised her, but she felt him smile against her ear.

"Strong people," he whispered. The hand at her collar now brushed over her throat, and she swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. "They're from—"

The sliding door opened with a snap, following closely by a voice Tenten knew about as well as her own. "But I'm sure he'll be pleased by my—"

Urume and Tenten looked over in time to see Neji, a ready-to-negotiate smile on his face. Ryo was standing behind him, appearing as though he had been trying to keep the Hyuuga from entering the room. The smile hung on Neji's lips for a second even as his eyes filled with something unidentifiable. It felt to Tenten as though her heart had gone from being a heated, beating, life-giving organ to something ice-cold and hard. She could only wonder what he saw as he stood there, tension winding through him so tightly that it almost looked like he was performing the Byakugan. What did he think of her in that moment, with an enemy's hands on her?

"I…" There was no smile now; in fact, it looked like Neji was barely leashing hostility. But the worst thing was his voice, positively deadly in its quiet. "I seem to be interrupting. Excuse me."

"Ne…" Tenten checked herself just in time. "Hiraya-sama! Please, I have to go." She looked at Urume, who appeared somewhat shocked himself. Letting the kunai drop back into her obi, she began extracting herself from his grip. She didn't even have the presence of mind to take her jade hair ornament back from the syndicate leader before hurrying to the door.

"Amaya-chan!"

"I have to go!" she called again, leaving him alone with candlelight and the remnants of their meal.

* * *

Tenten half-chased, half stumbled after Neji. The floor-length hem of her kimono made it difficult for her to properly run, and she seriously began to miss the comfortable, durable clothes she was used to wearing in Konoha, silk and moons be damned.

His guest room door was shut to her – this one was a regular swinging wood panel, not a traditional sliding door – and Tenten gave several hard, loud knocks. "Kana-sama!" she called. When no answer came forth, she became desperate. With a frustrated pound to the wood with the heel of her hand, she changed tactics. "_Neji_!"

The door opened. Tenten didn't know if it was because he wanted her to come in or because he feared that she would blow their cover, but she didn't miss her chance and barreled inside as best she could. As she was turning to look at him, Neji was shutting the door so that his back was facing her.

She talked anyway. "Why the hell did you go and _do that_, Neji! You ruined everything!"

"I can see that," came the soft murmur. All she could see was part of a hakama. The dark blue gi he wore was covered by the thick fall of his coal-dark hair.

Tenten wished she could see his face but went on with her accusations. "Neji, this mission has been put in serious jeopardy thanks to you! I won't get a chance like that again. _Oh_, he was just about to _tell _me who he was planning on dealing with! What on earth is your _problem_!"

"My _problem_—!" In a passionate fit the likes of which Tenten didn't even know he was capable of having, Neji swiveled around and stalked toward her with threat in his gaze. "My problem is that you are in over your head! My problem is that this mission is not _for you_!"

On any other occasion, the depth of emotion in both Neji's voice and expression may have captivated Tenten. But tonight she was so infuriated that she could hardly see him or even hear him. What she saw was the arrogant number-one rookie, and what she heard was that "genius" telling her that she was unfit to protect Konoha. It was personal.

"Yes, it _is_!" she hissed, her voice rising. Needing something physical to do, she reached up and tore out the second ornament from the remaining bun on her head. The rest of her hair rushed down, falling over her shoulders. Unsatisfied, she threw the stick across the room and glared at him. "This assignment was given to _me_! I'm just as good as Ino or Sakura or Hinata! I can do this better than _they _can, or Tsunade-sama wouldn't have chosen me! What makes you think that—"

"Shut up."

She did, but it wasn't because he had ordered her to. It was because Neji had stopped looking at her again and had his eyes aimed at the floor. Both hands were clenched into fists. His whole body shook, and the tension was rolling off of him in waves. Part of Tenten went into shock from seeing him in such a state, something that wasn't helped when he looked up at her again with eyes that practically glowed with rage.

"He was all over you," Neji growled.

The shock died an instant death, and the anger swelled up tenfold. "Do you really believe," she asked, her voice sounding hollow, "for an _instant_ that I was going to let him really touch me?" Reaching back, she jerked the kunai out from her obi. Though she had at least five more in there, she only needed one to prove her point. "This was in my _hand_ when you walked in! Walked in like a stupid—"

"Guest," he supplied, "who had been waiting all night for _Takane_ _Amaya _to bring him tea."

She remembered her words from the hot spring that morning. "I told him that to get out of there."

"You had been in there for _three hours_. What was I supposed to think?"

"You were spying on me?" Thrown off by the thought, she gaped at him. It felt like a shuriken had been lodged into her heart, and the blood was running down, down… "I didn't even tell you that I was going to see him!"

"I was watching you," he corrected her. "That's what partners do."

"Because you've been acting like a real partner," she snapped. "You don't have the right to—"

"_He told me about it_!"

Tenten's tongue went as still as though it had fallen off. It took her almost a full minute to process Neji's words and even then she was still confused. "He..."

"He described it to me," Neji clarified, his voice returning to normal volume. He didn't meet her eyes as he spoke but rather looked at the blank wall behind her. "In the hot spring. I got him to tell me about his plan to steal the medicine – three nights from now – but then he switched the topic back to you. He kept…" He paused, appearing to debate something with himself, but then decided that she could hear what he was thinking after all. "He kept talking about your body, about things that he could _do _to you. But what else could I do except play the rich man who liked the same things he did and smile and laugh while listening to him say things about _you _that no one should _ever_…"

Tenten was thankful that he trailed off because she was sure that she didn't want to hear any more. Her insides seemed to roll, and the unwell feeling that had managed to go away after she first met Urume Hidegaya now returned full-force, but she fortunately didn't become ill. Her strength, however, left her in a rush, and she fell, her knees hitting the floor. She stared unseeing up at Neji.

Neji stared back, but his vision was in total focus, and the girl he had grown up with became a normal woman right before his eyes. Finding his voice again was a struggle, but he managed it. "He's sick, Tenten. And Tsunade-sama was right. He _is _a bastard."

"He wanted to…" After a moment, alertness seemed to snap back into Tenten, but the result was a bad one. Sitting down on the floor, she brought her knees up to her chest and buried her face in her arms. "I was stupid…stupid, _stupid_!"

She had… Tenten felt her nose burn, a sign that she was about to break down and cry. She had almost started to _like _him!

She hated crying. She had only shed tears a total of three times since she was thirteen, and this was the first time she actually _wanted _to cry. But not in front of Neji, not for anything, and Tenten's entire body quaked with the effort of holding back sobs. Tenten felt his presence grow closer, and then she heard him kneel by her side.

"Tenten."

She didn't respond, but she bit her lip, hidden by her forearm. Maybe he would be like the animal he fought like; if she just stayed still and quiet, he would leave her alone…

"_Tenten_."

She never figured out what made her raise her head; she only knew that it had to do with the way he said her name. When she did look up, she didn't have time to focus on Neji. She didn't have time to focus on anything, because in a moment there was a hand buried deep in her thick hair, and it was as though she was locked in a vice, he was holding her so tightly. She felt her head being drawn back – gently, but urgently.

In the same way, he kissed her, fusing his lips to hers like it was the secret to breathing, the reason for life. And then Tenten was simply _unable _to focus on anything. In surprise, she reared back. A hand meant to brace her accidentally knocked over the only lantern in the room, and they were plunged into darkness as the flame shivered out.

By then her eyes had closed of an accord not her own…or perhaps it was simply an accord she wasn't yet familiar with. However, Tenten was fairly certain that it was her choice when he arms went around him.

That simple motion seemed to be all the encouragement Neji needed, but his hand left her hair to start roaming over her back, over her neck, while his other hand took a turn in her hair. An instant later, he was pulling her to her knees, and Tenten moaned when he took his lips away from hers. Her fingers dug into the back of his gi and dove into _his _hair.

It was when he pressed his lips to the side of her neck that she started losing understanding of what was going on. She felt herself pulling at something and felt herself getting pulled at until the room got several hundreds degrees warmer.

It was in that moment that she began to feel like an adult. She felt the cool mattress of a futon against her now-bare back. She could smell the green tea scent of her own hair as it fanned out around a pillow. She felt Neji's hands anchoring her, but she still drifted away in his eyes.

Eyes like silver in the moonlight that had managed to creep into the room. Eyes that went right into her, through her.

It felt like the rest of the world had emptied itself, leaving only Neji and Tenten behind.

She didn't miss any of it.

* * *

Please review! 


	4. Accomplished

**A/N**: You all blow me away with your comments! I see now that I must STRIVE to become EVEN BETTER! NE, BERRY-SENSEI! Seriously though, you are all waaaay too nice about this fic. G-Bee, Alana, Ennariel, Cyberwolf, HyuugaTenTenHot, nejitentenlee13, AmazingSensation…and everyone else! (Oh noes, the name game will get me in trouble!) ; Thank you for your kind words, they make my YOUTHFUL ENERGY IGNITE! _Nice guy pose. _

You know, I'm starting to realize that by impersonating Lee, I've become the biggest dork on FFN, hehehe.

Also, this is the end! Surprise! Actually, this was never meant to be an incredibly long fic. It started off in my mind as a one-shot. I guess sometimes things don't work out as planned. But I hope you all enjoyed it! I just know there'll be more NejiTen from me in the future. I love them! And you! Thanks again.

**Warning: **Spoilers for Naruto II. Thanks, Wikipedia!

**Disclaimer: **I dis the claim of _Naruto_!

**Mature Intentions**

Part Four: Accomplished

By Nessie

Sunlight trickled in like golden water, filling the room as a rising tide might, splashing over Tenten's eyes and stirring her into awareness. She had been trained to become fully alert upon the second she woke and had done just that since she was thirteen – but that particular mechanism was somehow broken this morning.

Habit forced her to sit up right away, but fog rolled through her brain and clouded all working thought processes for several moments. She looked around with half-seeing eyes at the sunny window, the clean walls of the guest room, the puddle of silk on the floor that was really the kimono she had worn last night…

That triggered it. Awareness came in a whoosh, almost audible as she suddenly took in her surroundings all at once. Her hair was unbound and tangled to the middle of her back, there were slight aches in places she hadn't even known about, and to top it all off, she was _naked_!

Though dreaming was still hovering too close for Tenten to sound panicked, her sleep-husky voice managed to project some alarm. "What time—!"

The desperate question died in throat as she felt a warm, strong hand brush over and onto her bare hip. Jerking her head down, she saw Neji, still lying down on the futon. He was looking at her with half-hooded eyes, long hair whispering over both of their bodies. (She was comforted a little to see that he was naked too.) From Tenten's place on the floor beside the futon, he appeared very serious. "We still have a few minutes before we should get up."

That was a decidedly un-Neji-like thing to say, Tenten thought. Something was very wrong. What had they…

_Oh. _She felt her own mouth form the word, but no sound came out. The memories came back, a bundle of images sliding through her mind. She remembered pitch black, his eyes, and unpracticed movements on the futon. Mostly she remembered the clumsiness of it all, but there was no doubt that it had been worth it.

After a recovering second, she narrowed her eyes at him. "You pushed me off in your sleep," she said in annoyance, motioning to where she sat on the floor.

Closing his eyes again, Neji gave a short snort that somehow sounded amused. "That's the least you deserve," he retorted indifferently. "I nearly impaled myself about a dozen times trying to get all those kunai off of you." And indeed, there were an impressive number of sharp implements that seemed to have been tossed around the room in a hurry.

Her jaw dropped for a second at the bold, blatant statement, but then a blush crept over her cheeks and nose. With a grin, she poked him in the side. "I thought you were worried about me."

"I know better than that." It was a flat-out lie, and they both knew it. Tenten couldn't suppress a giggle and in a swift movement she took her place back on the futon, tugging a bit of blanket over herself. Neji was not good at sharing, she discovered. "Are you alright?"

The question had her sobering. She knew he wasn't asking about her sleeping on the floor. "Yes," she answered carefully. "Did you think I wouldn't be?"

His face was close, and Neji finally opened his eyes again. White met brown…light met dark. It was a good combination. Tenten knew that whatever he saw as he looked at her was something she would never be able to understand. "I wasn't thinking at all."

She turned her eyes away, suddenly overwhelmed with what was inside of his gaze. He touched a couple of fingers to her jaw and turned her face back to him.

"I can't see inside you if you look away," he murmured. He absently stroked some loose strands back over the curve of her ear.

Tenten gave him something like a shy smile; as shy as one can be after growing up with someone. "I never knew you were looking."

Silence fell between them for several minutes, but the lack of conversation didn't make either of them feel uncomfortable. If Tenten was honest, the dramatic change in their relationship was not entirely a surprise to her. While she had never anticipated _this_, she had always known that Neji would burst with feeling one day. After bottling it up for so long, it was only natural.

She was almost giddily happy that the feelings were for her.

Once the few minutes he had spoken of were gone, Tenten forced herself to sit up again. She winced as she stretched, and her muscles protested loudly as she left the warmth of the futon and Neji's body. Feeling Neji's eyes on her, she almost wanted to cover up, but if she went around in the kimono today, there was a stronger possibility that she would be figured out.

"Here." Tenten felt something thick and warm being held against her back, and she responded instinctually by holding out her arms. Neji slipped his yukata over her and tied the belt around her waist from behind her. It was far too big on her slender frame. Leaning her head back, she felt her hair slip over his naked arm as she rested her head in the crook of his neck and shoulder. She breathed him in; the yukata bore his scent and she delighted in being covered by the essence of him.

The Hyuuga angled his head to look down at her, and she fit her lips against his perfectly, the same way their two bodies fit together. His hands laced with her fingers briefly, and Tenten felt that heating sensation again, a slow simmer, until he willfully gripped her shoulders and gently pushed her away.

"Mission," he muttered, not sounding at all convincing.

She made a sound that was something like a half-sigh of agreement. "Mission. What about Urume?"

"I sent a message to Konoha yesterday when he first told me when the operation to steal the medicine is to take place. Tsunade-sama should receive it in an hour or so." Neji's expression changed into something more serious, more like the duty-bound Hyuuga that he showed the world. "Technically, that will be enough to prevent the robbery. But it would be nice to find out who his associates are and take care of them as well." A silent apology for ruining the chance to do just that passed from him to her.

"Don't worry." Ever optimistic, Tenten only smiled. "I may still be able to get it out of him. Any suggestions?"

He surprised her with his reply. "No. I trust you."

Something in Tenten stiffened, but not with tension. In the next instant, that same thing started to melt away. She wondered what on earth it could have been. "Neji…"

Another companionable silence brought them closer rather than stretching them further apart. Neji broke it first by saying, "I also messaged the Hidden Sand."

"Why?" she asked, startled.

"Kankuro already contacted me. I found out three hours ago, before you woke up." A corner of his mouth quirked up into a smirk that Neji had perfected long ago. "Apparently Urume's operated in their village before, and they've been trying to get him. They're interested in taking him off of our hands."

Tenten was admittedly amused by the fact that he had been up even before her. That was the genius at work. "What does that mean?"

"I don't know. But you should hurry." He started to help her retrieve kunai and shuriken from around the room, completely unabashed by his state of undress. He handed her the weapons and also the ornamental hair stick she had thrown away in her anger the night before.

Tenten frowned momentarily. Urume still had the other one. "I'll meet up with you later." She went for the window, intending to get back to her room by going over the roof. She had only gotten one leg out and was still half inside when Neji softly touched her hand.

His expression was solemn. "Put your hair back up," he told her.

Interested, Tenten lifted an eyebrow at him. "I thought you liked it down."

"I do." Leaning forward, he seized her in a final kiss. When she was properly dazed, he added, "But no one is going to see you that way except me."

She couldn't help it. Tenten beamed. "Okay," she promised and hurried out the window before he could distract her any longer.

No, she thought as she ran over the rooftop of the Yumuwa Inn in the direction of her room. They definitely were not children anymore.

* * *

Tenten came upon her first real problem later that afternoon. Once she had showered, changed, and made sure her hair was secured very, _very _tightly, she had been able to track Urume down in the hot spring. Though he asked her to join him, she took evasive action and was able to convince him to instead go on a walk with her.

"The gardens are so beautiful right now. All of the flowers have bloomed, and the butterflies are out. Besides," she added hastily when Urume began to look disinterested, "we haven't really gotten to know each other – ah – personally yet."

Urume, being a completely self-absorbed person, seemed to warm up at the possibility of talking about himself. "Well, I don't know how much I care about butterflies," he began. Ryo, who was now never more than a stone's throw away from his employer, whispered something that Tenten couldn't hear. To this Urume simply waved a hand carelessly and retorted, "Don't be silly, Ryo! Amaya-chan is a damsel – not a dragon."

Tenten inwardly smirked at this. Hinata had once compared her to a lioness, with many sharp teeth. "And they all come down at once!" the Hyuuga heiress had exclaimed admiringly.

Maybe Hinata was right. Once Urume had dressed and joined her, she led him outside to the back of the inn where the lush gardens were. As she did, she couldn't help but feel as though she might be leading the syndicate leader to the proverbial lion's den.

"Well, you wanted to talk." Urume sounded slightly impatient with her. "So I expect you to talk, Amaya-chan."

His _Amaya-chan _wasn't quite as fawning now as it had been last night. Tenten supposed she had struck a nerve upon her departure, and Urume didn't seem like one who could handle his nerves getting struck. "I want to apologize," she said softly. "I left so rudely last night."

"Indeed," he sniffed. "I had plans for us and you ran off at the slightest little setback. That isn't a very graceful thing to do, you realize."

Tenten realized that waiting around for him to attempt his sick fantasies was not only disgraceful but perfectly stupid. And, if she was honest, it may have come close to that last night. She mentally thanked Neji for the thousandth time. Forcing herself to appear pathetic, she said, "I do realize that, Urume-sama. I do hope that you can find it in your kind heart to forgive me. I never meant to offend you."

He studied her with cold eyes, and Tenten couldn't believe she had ever thought there was anything nice about that dimly-lit green color. At first it seemed that Urume didn't believe her, but then his shoulders slackened their tightness, and he nodded. Setting a hand on her elbow (just below where she had a shuriken hidden), he pulled her closer to him.

"You were right," he said at last. "These gardens are lovely."

She tried to make herself sound elated. "You think so! Oh! Then does that mean Urume-sama is pleased by me?"

Something entered his face, oozing off of him like a watery mold. "Yes," he told her, his voice sounding thick. "Yes, I am pleased by you."

Tenten stopped her hand when it was halfway around to a stashed kunai at the small of her back and had to deliberately lay her fingers against her side. "Then I'm glad. But please, the interruption of last night has saddened me all day. Your words were so very interesting!"

"What can a little servant girl possibly find interesting about business?" he asked, bemused. "I was rambling."

_No, you were distracted_."When you have led a life such as mine—" Here she clutched his sleeve as though it was a precious jewel within her reach. "—you find many things interesting."

Urume's eyebrows arched, and Tenten knew she had struck gold. "Well, I could always show you many _other _things…"

_Keep smiling_, Tenten ordered herself so that the hate in her head would not reach her eyes. "Oh, but Urume-sama is surely too busy to spend much time with me."

"What nonsense do you say? I've spent nearly the past three days in their entirety with you, haven't I? Amaya-chan, you are far too modest." Urume grinned. "All a girl needs is to look like you, and I would gladly surrender my time."

"Then please," she begged, "finish telling me what you were in the middle of saying last night."

With a sigh, he nodded. "I suppose I must. You beautiful women are so relentless!" Once she had guided him to a bench, he surprised her by pulling Tenten straight onto his lap instead of next to him. Her abdomen tightened in resistance, but Urume took the action as nervousness instead of the disgust it truly was. "Very well. But I honestly can't see what a simple woman like you could find interesting about normal business affairs."

If he thought stealing medicine to distribute as drugs was a normal process, Tenten thought angrily, she had absolutely no desire to know what he thought of as unusual. "As long as you tell me, I'm sure I will find all of it fascinating."

"Flatterer," he admonished but was pleased. "Actually, dear Amaya-chan, I've already told you about my associate. But I suppose I shouldn't expect you to have caught on."

Startled, Tenten was thrown off. What did he mean by that? He had to be lying. Surely if he _had _revealed the true dealing partner's identity, Tenten would have recognized the meaning the instant he said the name. "You…you've told me already, Urume-sama?"

"Weren't you paying any attention last night?" Chuckling, he tapped a wandering hand against her thigh. Tenten had a growing wish to inflict great bodily harm upon the man, and she wished he would hurry up and quit stalling so that she could give in to that wish. "Oh, but you _are _just a girl."

The grip on his sleeve tightened with the rising of her temper, but she only hardened her smile. "Please indulge my foolishness."

"Of course. Well, I told you when we tried that brandy you so disliked. I told you I received the drink from my associate in the Hidden Cloud, didn't I? He is my only reliable trader. I do all my exchange deals with him."

The memory walloped Tenten in the brain. She'd been too intrigued by him at the time to fully hear him, but she now remembered the words. _"I obtained this from an associate of mine in the Hidden Cloud. He tells me they make it there, but I have reason to believe he got it from America."_

It was the key to everything.

"His name," she demanded, unable to hold back the desperation that squeezed out from her tone. "Tell me his name…please."

"But what possible difference can it make to you?"

She abruptly left his lap and stood up. "Urume-sama…"

"Oh, all right. He goes by Ousuke Jiban. There, are you satisfied?"

The name meant nothing to her, but Tenten smiled to see the frown that crossed his face. He was apparently disappointed that she did not immediately return to her previous position on his legs. "Not quite, Urume-sama." She was aware that her voice had altered and sounded once again like Tenten instead of Amaya-chan.

Before she could elaborate on why she was not satisfied, a new aura made itself known from behind her. She did not know the presence, but it seemed somehow familiar to her. Was it Ryo? Looking over her shoulder, Tenten's eyes widened.

Of all the people to show up here and now, on this already-mysterious mission, she had never expected that she might cross paths with this person.

"Gaara-san!"

The Fifth Kazekage stood with his back perfectly straight, his arms crossed, and an invincible expression on his face. He did not carry his trademark enormous gourd on his back, but that did nothing to lessen the intimidation that Gaara had always possessed. Though Tenten had never known him personally, she remembered his presence during her first Chuunin Exam, and she had heard the stories of his kidnapping by Akatsuki.

That alone told her that Gaara was no one to mess with, even though it had been said that there was an evident change in his personality since taking over the leadership of the Hidden Sand village.

The redhead didn't meet her eyes as his gaze was trained steadily on Urume, but he spoke in even, smooth tones. "Tenten. I've heard about you from Naruto. He told me you're quite the kunoichi."

_Naruto said that? _Letting it go for now, she smiled at the dark-eyed newcomer. "I've heard a few things about you, too, Gaara-san. Or…sama."

"San is fine," he assured her. He had a strange way of sounding casual even while a threat hung in his aquamarine eyes. "You've done well. We of the Hidden Sand have been trying to get a confession out of Urume Hidegaya for almost two years now."

He turned his eyes briefly to her. Tenten felt a rush, as though she was face-to-face with an old power. While it was being questioned how much of his technique Gaara had retained after supposedly dying, the memory of his strength lingered and affected her in a peculiar way. When he looked at Urume again, she couldn't help but feel somewhat relieved.

"Stay," he ordered Urume, who promptly fell backwards off of the bench and trembled beneath the Kazekage's gaze. He said absolutely nothing and showed no signs of moving but turned murderous eyes to Tenten, who didn't resist a smug smile.

It was at that moment that Neji appeared, seeming to materialize at her side. She felt his hand on her shoulder and turned her smile, this one much kinder, to him. "Where did you come from?"

"I just took out that Ryo guy," he explained. "I timed myself. It took about three seconds."

She shook her head. He was always the number-one rookie.

"Hyuuga Neji," said Gaara.

Neji turned to him with an expression that was not wholly surprised. "Gaara of the Sand." Though a handshake wasn't impending for these two who were alike in personality, Tenten could feel the respect they instantly shared, even though Neji hadn't known Gaara any better than she.

"Your partner has done excellent work. And you have my thanks for that letter you sent this morning. As soon as I heard about Urume Hidegaya being here, I decided I had to come myself. The Sand has already captured the criminal named Ousuke Jiban. With one look at Kankuro's puppet, he confessed everything." There was no smile from this strange man, but somehow he still projected his fractional amusement.

Neji cast a look at Urume. "What will you do with him?"

"The Hidden Sand is much better equipped than Konoha for dealing with exchange vermin like him. He's hardly a powerful threat. We may confine him or possibly send him to America where all that nasty brandy came from. His bodyguard I have no care for." Gaara shrugged one shoulder. "I've already sent an informant to tell all of this to your Hokage. She knows that I'll be taking care of it."

"Gaara-san," smiled Tenten.

He looked at her again, but this time he seemed far less abrasive. "I can only imagine what you had to go through with scum like this. You're to be admired."

With a soft chuckle, Tenten sent Neji a pointed glance. "It wasn't that bad," she murmured.

Gaara looked between the two of them, and then nodded as though he was understanding something new. "Well, then. I'll be going." Stepping toward Urume, he grabbed the older man by the collar of his gi and hauled him up. "If there's anything I can do for you," began Gaara.

"There is," Tenten said. She looked at Urume, then at Neji. "Together?"

"I think that's best," nodded the Hyuuga. Raising his hand, he Gentle Fisted Urume in the jaw just as Tenten leapt up and delivered a meager roundhouse kick to his side. Urume groaned, but neither blow would leave any lasting damage. He passed out from fear rather than pain.

Gaara looked openly amused now, with a tiny smile that seemed to outdo the oddity of the "love" tattoo on his forehead. "Goodbye," he said to both of them, and after hesting Urume's unconscious body over his shoulder, he jumped up and was gone in the blink of an eye.

Tenten inhaled deeply and let out a long, muscle-loosening sigh. "I'm _so _glad that's over," she declared.

Neji smiled. It was a facial expression reserved for the privacy shared between the two of them. He dipped his hand into the fold of his gi. "I found this after defeating the bodyguard," he told her, holding his hand out palm-up to reveal the jade hair ornament that had been left in Urume's room.

"Oh, good! Sakura would have been upset if I lost it." Tenten reached out to take it from him, but kept her hand in his. Her eyes softening, she murmured to him. "Thank you."

It was understood that the gratitude went deeper than a hair accessory, and the Hyuuga's fingers tightened over hers.

"I'm ready to leave," she told him, sounding somewhat tired.

He nodded, saying nothing, and together they headed back into the Yumuwa, intending to gather their things. Before they reached the door, Neji stopped. "Tenten."

She looked up at him. "What is it?"

Neji's face was completely serious. He seemed to be considering something because she could practically hear the wheels turning in his head. After a minute, he asked, "What's brandy?"

Blinking, Tenten stared. Her shoulder began to shake, and in a moment she was laughing with abandon, tears of mirth streaming down her face.

---

They took their time getting back, enjoying the summer journey back toward their village. Sunlight dappled the leafy green trees, and Tenten was perfectly content to walk hand-in-hand with Neji. They could pretend for a few hours that they were just normal young people. They talked little, preferring to appreciate each other and the brilliant show of nature in quiet.

By the time they got close, the sun had set and the moon had risen full and pale, like a landmark in a sea of stars. Neither minded the dark, having already been given their share of it. When they reached the top of the final hill, they paused to see Konoha stretched out below them.

The village was unusually noisy, and they were both somewhat surprised to see the city aglow with thousands of torches and lanterns. Music drifted up to them, and Tenten could almost swear that above all of it, she could hear Naruto demanding ramen and Sakura losing her patience with him.

"A festival?" she inquired, looking at her companion. Perhaps Tsunade-sama had used the prevention of the medicine being stolen as an excuse to have a party and drink sake all night. It seemed like something the reckless Hokage would do.

Neji only shrugged. "It looks that way." An unexpected look crossed his face, something that almost seemed…_mischievous_. "In that case, you should hurry and change before we go join them."

"Change?" She glanced down at her usual black pants and collared shirt and then eyed him quizzically.

"That's right." He slipped the pack he carried off of his back and opened it. Since it was Neji, he didn't hurry, but Tenten found herself growing strangely excited. Before long, he had taken from the bag a garment of stunning purple silk. Crescent moons dotted the material. It was, in fact, the sleeveless kimono Tenten had admired and had last been seen upon the floor of Neji's room at the inn. "Your Baa-chan asked me to give this to you. I think she took to you, Tenten."

Tenten grinned as she shed her current uniform in favor for the lighter, more flattering piece. She felt Neji watch her task with a certain look she was really starting to appreciate. Once she was changed, she took up her own backpack again, but Neji made her pause by setting a hand on her shoulder.

In one, unexpected motion, he removed the ties that held up her customary buns, and her hair tumbled down wildly. Tenten tilted her head up at him. "Didn't you say," she asked teasingly, "that you wanted to be the only one who saw me like this?"

He nodded, but he set his hands under her jaw and gently turned her face up to his with his thumbs. "Tonight," he told her in a quiet voice that had her pulse skidding, "I'll make an exception."

The kiss was slow and warm, but not overpowering, and when they parted it was with a smile.

"Why?" she asked him as they began down the hill.

Neji gave her a sidelong look, and she flushed without knowing why.

"It's the only way I know how to show everyone that I love you."

Startled only briefly, Tenten took his hand into her own. As the only entrance into Konoha opened wide to welcome them home, she whispered, "I think your intentions are a little more mature than that."

With the slightest of smirks, he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her to him, and Tenten responded by throwing her head back and challenging him with her own fiery stare. Hyuuga Neji's white eyes managed to darken.

"Not _yet_."

**The End

* * *

**


End file.
